Illuminated sign



PATENTBD SEPT. 20, 1904.

W. C. DE CAMPS.

ILLUMINATED SIGN.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 27, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

I V I @fllforge ys Nirnn STATES Patented September 20, 1904.

ILLUIVIINATED SIGN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 770,680, dated September 20, 1904.

Application filed November 2'7, 1903. Serial No. 182,882. (No model.)

T0 on whom, it neay concern:

Be it known that I, VVYLIE CROTHERS DE CAMPS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Parkersburg, in the county of Wood and State of West Virginia, have invented a new and useful Illuminated Sign, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved lampbox for illuminated signs, and has for its object to provide an inexpensive, durable, and efficient device of this character by means of which transparent, translucent, or opaque letters or any combination of letters, characters, or symbols may be efiectively displayed.

A further object of the invention is to provide a lamp-box having interchangeable display covers or plates, so that said plates or covers may be readily interchanged with the covers of similar boxes for the purpose of forming various combinations of letters or characters.

A further object of the invention is to provide a moisture-proof box and to form the same in such a manner that the letters or characters may be displayed at both the front and rear of the box, both signs being illuminated by the same lamp or lamps.

A still further object is to form the box of a single piece of material bent into the desired shape and formed with guiding-flanges adapted to receive corresponding flanges on the covers or plates, so that said plates or covers may be readily placed in position and quickly removed to permit access to the interior of the box, the use of hooks, catches, and similar auxiliary fastening devices being entirely dispensed with.

The invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the claims hereto appended, it being understood that various changes in form, proportion, and minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of a lamp-box constructed in accordance with my invention with one of the interchangeable letters in position. Fig.

2 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 3 isa transverse sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of the box with the front and rear covers removed. Fig. 5 is a sectional view showing the back plate removed and a display-cover substituted. Fig. 6 is a sectional view illustrating a modified form of the invention. I

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

1 designates the body of the box, which may be formed of wood, glass, metal, or other suitable material, being preferably formed of a single strip of sheet metal bent into substantially rectangular form, as shown, the overlapping ends of the strip being soldered, riveted, or otherwise secured together, as indicated at 2. The box is preferably provided with corner-braces 2 and the side walls thereof form ed with oppositely-disposed outwardlyextending flanges 3, which form guides for channel-flanges et on the side edges of the display-cover 5 and back plate 5, respectively. The display-cover 5 consists of a substantially rectangular symbol-carrying frame 6, the lower edge of which is bent outwardly, as shown at 7, and soldered or otherwise secured to the bed-piece 8 at points adjacent the channel-flanges 4. Secured to the inner face of frame 6 is a channel-bar 9, the upper portion 10 of which forms a seat for the lower edge 11 of a preferably glass plate 12, in which is molded, blown, or otherwise formed the letter, character, or symbol to be displayed, the letter I (designated by the numeral 13) being shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings by way of illustration. The glass or other material of which the letter 13 is formed is preferably translucent, while the background is opaque, as indicated at 14:, thereby causing the letter to be more clearly distinguished when the sign is illuminated. The letters, however, may be opaque, if desired, in which case the background will be transparent.

The bed-piece 8 of the display-cover 5 is provided with a central opening 15, communicating with the interior of the box and through which the rays of light from suitable lamps 16, preferably incandescent, are admitted to the plate 12 to illuminate the letter or character to be displayed. When ordinary oil-lamps are employed, I provide suitby the same lamp, or lamps.

able brackets 17, secured to the side walls of the box for supporting the same, openings 18 being formed in the end walls to permit the escape of the products of combustion. The end walls of the box are also provided with outwardly-projecting flanges 19, adapted to receive channel-flanges 20, formed on the ends of the display-cover 5 and back plate 5, respectively, and serve to limit the downward movement of said cover and plate and hold the same in proper position on the guide-flanges 3. The back plate 5 and display-cover 5 being of the same size and provided with similar fastening devices may be readily interchanged, and, if desired, the back plate may be removed and a display-cover similar in construction to the cover 5 substituted, as clearly shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings, thereby permitting two signs to be displayed, one at each side of the box, both being illuminated When several of the boxes are used, the display-covers of said boxes may also be interchanged to permit the formation of different words or combination of words, as will be readily understood.

In Fig. 5 I have illustrated a modified form of the invention, in which the channel-flanges 4: are formed on the box instead of on the display-cover and back plate, respectively, the construction of the sign in other respects being similar to that illustrated in Fig. 1.

By having the lamp-box made in the manner described it is rendered practically moisture-proof, which is very essential in signs of this character. While I have shown and described the lamp-boxes as being preferably rectangular in contour, it is obvious that they may be of any shape desired without departing from the spirit of the invention.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that I have provided an exceedingly durable and attractive illuminated sign in which the display-covers of the several lamp-boxes may be readily interchanged to vary the reading of the sign and in which the back plates of the individual boxes may beremoved and plates or covers provided with letters or characters substituted to therebyform a sign having double display-faces.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. In adevice of the class described, acasing provided with laterally-extending guidingflanges, and interchangeable symbol carrying frames engaging said flanges and" projecting beyond the general plane of the casing.

2. In adevice of the class described, a casing provided with guiding-flanges, and interchangeable symbol-carrying frames engaging said flanges and projecting beyond the general plane of the casing, said symbol-carrying frames constituting a part of the front and rear walls of said casing.

3. In adevice of the class described, acasing, a detachable symbol-carrying frame constituting a part of the front wall of said casing, and a transparent symbol arranged on an opaque background carried by said frame and projecting beyond the general plane of the casing.

4. Inadevice of the class described, a casing having its side and end walls provided with oppositely disposed outwardly extending flanges, braces connecting the side and end walls of the casing, and interchangeable symcol-carrying frames slidably mounted on the flanges of the side walls and provided with channel-flanges adapted to engage the flanges on the end walls of the casing.

5. In adevice of the class described, a casing provided with guiding-flanges, a bed-piece provided with corresponding flanges adapted to engage the flanges on the casing, a symbol-carrying frame secured to the bed-piece, and a display face or symbol seated within said frame.

6. A display-face for sign-boxes comprising a bed-piece, a symbol-carrying frame secured thereto, a channel-iron defining a seatingflange, and a display plate or symbol seated within said flange.

7 In adevice of the class described, the combination with an illuminated box or case provided with guiding-flanges, a display-face provided with a bed-piece having its side edges bent inwardly to form channel-flanges adapted to engage the guiding-flanges, a symbol-carrying frame secured to the bed-piece, a channel-iron carried by the frame and defining a seating-flange, and a display plate or symbol adapted to engage said seating-flange.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto aflixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

WYLIE CROTHERS DE CAMPS. 

